Shock Wave Therapy

Yesterday I started Shock Wave Therapy* to speed up healing of my tendon. If you’ve watched Homeland and seen Carrie treated for Bi-Polar Disorder, strapped to a bed while electric shocks are pulsed through her brain, it’s just like that. Except on the foot.

According to the Chiropractor, Shock Wave Therapy for tendonitis is ultrasound on steroids. Apparently it was first used by the German and Swiss teams at the Athens Olympics, who hopefully were not on steroids. At 311 USD for five 4-minute sessions it ain’t cheap but as a 4-minute session was more than long enough, I won’t be arguing for longer sessions.

I’m one of those annoying women who, when faced with the prospect of pain, will say dismissively: ‘Oh I’ve had three children, so…’ Implied in the ‘so…’ is the notion that having squeezed something the size of a melon through my cervix, three times, I am capable of enduring great pain. What I never mention is that for the first two births I had epidurals and the pain from the third has been long lost to memory.

Shock Wave Therapy is painful and I don’t think I’m going to forget that in a hurry! It’s like being hammered in the foot with a high voltage, blunt instrument. The shock waves are administered using a probe and gel in the same manner as ultrasound. Still, no pain, no gain as they say.

The Chiropractor doesn’t think I’ll be back running for at least two more weeks but of course I harbour fantasies of a speedier recovery and not just so I can avoid further treatment. I really, really miss running!

* During Shockwave therapy, a high-intensity sound wave interacts with the tissues of the body. This leads to a cascade of beneficial effects such as neovascularisation ingrowth, reversal of chronic inflammation, stimulation of collagen and dissolution of calcium build-up. Stimulation of these biological mechanisms creates an optimal healing environment.